Pf mG, 


RACES OF BURMA 


BY 


REV. E. F. MERRIAM 


TEER EDITION, 


BOSTON 
AMERICAN BAPTIST MISSIONARY UNION 
TREMONT TEMPLE 


1893 


~J 


THE materials for this sketch of the races of Burma have 
been drawn chiefly from articles and letters from the mission- 
aries published in the “ Baptist Missionary Magazine.” The 
tract is not put forth as an exhaustive treatise on the subject, 
but to furnish those interested in missions in that country 
sufficient information to assist them to an intelligent appre- 
hension of the various races, as they are referred to in our 
missionary periodicals and literature. 

The first editions of this tract have met with an unex- 
pected demand, and the third is sent forth, with some 
corrections and additions, in the hope that it may be 


increasingly useful. 


Y / 
° 
Abe 


THE RACES OF BURMA. 


1. The State of the Country. 


Burma is acknowledged to be the most prosperous 
province of British India. The soil is fertile and well- 
watered ; the returns to the farmer are bountiful. The 
commerce of the province is active and extensive. 
The wages of the laborers, as well as the cost of their 
living, are more than three times as high as in India 
proper. Education is more generally diffused. The 
people are heavily burdened with taxation, but not be- 
yond their ability to pay; and social life is freer, hap- 
pier, and more comfortable than in other parts of India. 
Young people in Burma marry earlier than in America, 
and are not fettered for life by marriages made by their 


parents in their childhood, as in some heathen coun-. 


tries. Women occupy a more independent positiom 


than is usual in heathen lands. They manage their — 


households, go about freely, and even engage in trade 
and accumulate property independently of their hus- 
bands. Under these favorable conditions, the popu- 
lation of Burma is rapidly increasing, and in both 
Lower and Upper Burma is estimated at 8,000,000. 
In 1880, the province exported about $42,000,000 


4 


worth of products, and imported about $35,000,000 
worth of various goods, which consisted largely of 
luxuries rather than necessities. For several years, 
the average surplus of exports over imports has 
amounted to $6,700,000 a year, showing that the coun- 
try has substantial foundations for increasing wealth. 


Upper Burma was added to the British possessions 
in India in 1885, and the whole country is now open 
to the labors of Christian missionaries. 


Ds Variation, in. maces: 


The British Province of Burma includes Arakan, 
and extends from the Bay of Bengal on the south to 
the boundaries of Assam and China on the north. 
‘Within these limits there are said to be as many as 
‘forty-seven different tribes scattered over the country, 
and whose habitations often closely intermingle in both 
town and country. It is thought that there is no coun- 
try in the world whose people are more varied in race, 
language, and customs than Burma. The Mongolian 
element predominates; but some of the subordinate 
races appear to be of a different descent, as they are 
of a different language and religion, and their tradi- 
tions also point to a more western derivation. The 
origin of all the races of Burma is, however, wrapped 
in much obscurity, as well as the dates of their arrival 
in the country. At the beginning of authentic Burman 
history, the lower part of Burma was held by a people 
called by others Taligns or Peguans, from their ancient 


5 


capital Pegu, but who style themselves Mons. ‘These 
were conquered about one hundred and fifty years ago 
by the Burmans, who held the rule over the whole of 
Burma until it was taken from them by the British in 
three. conflicts; in 1826,1552, and 18385. “ These’ are 
the only peoples who have controlled Burma within the 
historical period. The other races now found there 
have come in by migration from the north or from 
adjoining lands. From its location and the variety of 
its races, Burma is a strategic point for Christian mis- 
sions, as its influence is strongly felt in surrounding 
countries. 


3S. The Burmans. 


The Burman is the ruling race of Burma, and by far 
the most numerous. In Lower Burma alone, they 
number upwards of 2,500,000 in a total population of 
2,730,771 Lhe =proportien of Burnmans, is 1o0t.so 
large in Upper Burma. ‘They occupy the valleys and 
plains of the country; and the permanent population 
of the towns and cities is made up of Burmans, with a 
small proportion of other races. The Burman lan- 
guage is used by all of this race, with dialectic varia- 
tions in different parts of the land. It is the language 
of the courts and of literature, as well as the chief means 
of intercourse in trade. The government of Burma is 
using its authority to have the Burman made the lan- 
guage of the schools, and doubtless it will eventually 
become the common tongue of all races.. Education 
is common among the Burmans, asthe most of the men 


6 


can read and write; and they have acquired some of 
the arts of civilization, which they practise in a rude 
manner. ‘They are civil in their manners, and rather 
prepossessing in personal appearance, being not tall, but 
athletic in person. The Burman countenance is of a 
Mongolian type; but they are without the sleepy eyes 
of the Chinese, and have an open, wide-awake, and 
manly expression. In religion they are Buddhists. The 
women have a good share of their “rights,” and hold 
the family purse. Mission work for this people was 
begun by Mr. Felix Carey, son of Dr. William Carey. 
Dr. Judson was the pioneer of our American Baptist 
Missions among the Burmans; but, although they were 
the first in Burma to hear the gospel, they have not re- 
ceived it as readily as the Karens, to whom it came later. 


4. The Karens. 


The Karens are divided into several different tribes, 
using as many different dialects. Some of these re- 
semble each other so much that communication between 
them is not difficult, and in mission work the same 
books may be used; while others are so dissimilar 
that it requires close scientific observation to detect 
the resemblances. In general, the Karens are small of 
stature, but well proportioned, and of a quiet and peace- 
ful disposition. It is supposed that they originally 
occupied the hills of Burma, but as many are now found 
upon the plains as mountains. They usually depend 
upon agriculture for their subsistence. The Karens 


ri 


say that they came originally from the north, “ across 
the river of running sand,” which is held by some to 
be a name given to the desert between China and Tar- 
tary; but others think the meaning uncertain. They 
have traditions which correspond in a remarkable man- 
ner with the Old Testament account of the creation, 
temptation and fall of man, and also of the flood. 
They claim to have had religious books formerly, 
which were lost by their ancestors. From these tradi- 
tions, many have argued that the Karens are descended 
from the lost tribes of Israel; but this has never been 
fully established, and probably never can be. The 
terms White, Red, and Black Karens, which are fre- 
quently met with, come from variations in the color of 
the dress of different tribes. The Karens number 518,- 
294 in Lower Burma alone, and are also numerous in 
the Shan States and in the south-eastern part of Upper 
Burma. ‘They also extend over into Northern Siam. 
‘Dr. Francis Mason and many others are of the opinion 
that the hill tribes of Burma, Assam, China, and South- 
ern Tibet are more or less closely related. ‘The Karens 
are increasing in numbers more rapidly than any other 
people of Burma. Inreligion, they are generally spirit 
or demon worshippers, and are very superstitious; but 
they do not seem to be so firmly attached to their re- 
ligion as the Burmans. Buddhism, as well as Chris- 
tianity, is gaining many converts from their ranks. 


The Sgaw.— Under the term “Sgaw,” Dr. Mason 
included the Sgaw, Paku, Maunephgha, and We-wa 


8 


tribes of Karens; but, in the reports and letters from 
the missionaries, these are usually spoken of by their 
different names, although closely related. The Sgaw 
Karens proper are the leading and perhaps the most 
numerous of the Karen tribes. They live chiefly in 
the southern part of Lower Burma, but are found as 
far north as Prome and Toungoo, and even over in 
Northern Siam, to the east of Chengmai. The Pakus 
are found in the southern portion of the Toungoo dis- 
trict. The Maunephghas are east of Shwegyin, and 
the We-was (wanderers) are a small tribe, numbering 
perhaps three thousand, found between the boundaries 
of the Paku and Bghai Karens. 


The Pwos are probably less numerous than the 
Sgaws, and are found in the extreme southern part of 
British Burma, occupying substantially the same terri- 
tory as the Sgaws, with whom they constantly inter- 
mingle. They are a little more muscular and of more 
settled habits than the Sgaw Karens, and, because Bur- 
manized, stand rather higher in the scale of civilization, 
altaough they have not received the gospel with so 
great readiness. Dr. Mason classes the Mopghas with 
the Pwos. 


The Bghais. — Under this name are grouped various 
tribes of Karens, inhabiting the country north-east of 
Toungoo. They are wilder and more fierce in their 
habits than other Karen tribes, and the country in 
which they live is very mountainous. The construc- 
tion of their dwellings is very peculiar, each village 


o 


consisting of a single house, built like a bazaar, with 
rooms on each side of a walk which runs the whole 
length of the building. 


The Red Karens are included by Dr. Mason in the 
Bghai Karen tribes, but may be considered separately. 
They are supposed to number more than two hundred 
thousand, and occupy a distinct country northeast of 
Toungoo. The Burman kings made many efforts to 
conquer them; but they maintained their indepen- 
dence under native chiefs, who ruled the two or three 
districts into which their country is divided. Their 
territory is now included in the British province. They 
are the most fierce and warlike of the Karen tribes, 
and are said to be somewhat more advanced in the 
arts of civilization than others. The Red Karens 
seem to have held to the Karen religion in its purity, 
and a short description of it will give some idea of the 
faith of all the Karen tribes. 


They believe in one God, who is good, but who has 
little to do with the world at present. They also be- 
lieve in spirits, good and bad, and in a personal devil, 
who is the author of all the evil and suffering of life. 
This devil and the evil spirits are the principal objects 
of their worship, as they think thus to appease them, 
and so avoid the harm they might inflict. God and 
good spirits they neither fear nor worship. The Red 
Karens are said to believe in seven worlds, three 
above and three below, and all worse than this; so 
that, in dying, they expect to go inevitably to a worse 


1g@) 


place than they leave. They also have a system of 
meritorious works ; but it does not involve much sac- 
rifice, as it is so arranged that those things they wish 
to do are meritorious, and only those they do not care 
for are sinful. . 


3. ae Shee 


The Shans are a distinct race from the Burmans and 
Karens, and cover an extensive territory. ‘They speak 
substantially the same language wherever found. The 
Siamese and Laos are Shans, and they extend north- 
ward over into the province of Yunnan in China and 
north-west to the borders of Assam. In Lower Burma 
they number 55,723, and they are rapidly increasing 
by immigration from Upper Burma and Siam. The. 
Shans are the travelling traders of the country, bring- 
ing down large numbers of ponies and quantities of 
the products of Shan-land for sale to the people of 
Burma. Mone in the Shan States is their largest city, 
having about two thousand houses. The Shans have 
no independent government of their own, but are sub- 
ject to the authority of the land where they happen to 
be, whether it is Siam, China, or Burma. They are 
an active, intelligent, and enterprising people, occupy- 
ing many positions of trust and responsibility in Bur- 
ma. In religion they are Buddhists, and are exces- 
sively bigoted and hard to evangelize. 


Et 


6. The Kachins. 


This people call themselves the Chingpaus, and are 
supposed to be the same as the Singphos of the south- 
eastern hills of Assam. They are found on the hills of 
North-eastern Burma, and extend over into China and 
north to Tibet, in the south-eastern part of which they 
are said to be numerous. They are gradually crowd- 
ing farther southward in Burma, having made consid- 
erable progress in that direction within the memory 
of living witnesses. As they go, they displace the 
Shans and other people. ‘Their number is estimated 
at five millions ; but there are numerous tribal divisions, 
with variations of dialect. They are thought to be 
related in race to the Karens, having some of the same 
songs, customs, and traditions; but the language is so 
different that there can be no communication without 
acquiring the tongue anew. From what accounts we 
have of this people, robbery and murder would seem 
to be among their principal occupations. They are an 
independent, lawless, and wicked people, but practise 
rudely some of the arts of civilization. Their religion 
is substantially the same as that of the Karens de- 
scribed above, and has no power of moral restraint 
over their lives. Like the Karens also, they have a 
tradition of a former revelation, which was lost, since 
which time they have worshipped spirits, to which they 
sacrifice fowls, cattle, dogs, and pigs, drawing auguries 
from the condition of their entrails. 


12 


Wiaeinenohins: 


By the census of 1881 there were 55,015 Chins in 
Lower Burma, but the main body of the tribe is over 
the border in Upper Burma. They inhabit the west- 
ern Yoma range of mountains, stretching from Arakan 
to the Naga hills of Assam. Like the Karens, they 
are said to come from the north originally; and those 
of the north are exceedingly fierce. The southern 
Chins are milder, and are divided into four tribes with 
dialectic differences. Their language has been reduced 
to writing, and several hundred have been baptized. 
The women of the Chin settlements near the Burman 
towns are tattooed on their faces; but farther in the 
interior, where they are in no danger of capture by the 
ruling race, this practice is omitted, and they are said 
to be of fine appearance. In religion the Chins are 
nominally Buddhists; but they have not abandoned 
the ancient superstitions of their race, which are very 
similar to those of the Karens. Their religious cere- 
monies are for the purpose of propitiating the evil 
spirits who are considered the authors of all kinds of 
disease. ‘To these, they sacrifice fowls and swine. 
Like the Karens, they believe in a Spirit, the Creator 
and the Supreme Ruler of the universe; but they say 
he is so good no one need fear any thing from him, so 
it is not necessary to worship him. 


13 


8. The Toungthus. 


The Toungthus are supposed to be earlier inhab- 
itants of Lower Burma than either the Burmans or 
Taligns, and seem to be related most nearly to the 
Pwo Karens in language and character. ‘They are 
widely scattered over Burma and the Shan States, and 
are especially numerous in the south-eastern part of 
Upper Burma. In Lower Burma, they number 35,554; 
but this number is rapidly increasing, as they are im- 
migrating in considerable numbers from Upper Burma, 
and settling principally around their old city Thaton, 
and in the vicinity of Moulmein. The Toungthus 
have a written language, and are Buddhists in religion. 
They are a simple, timid people, and not so bigoted 
as the Burmans, whose dress and customs they are 
adopting. 


9. The Taligns. 


The Taligns or Peguans were formerly the ruling 
race of Lower Burma, their kingdom at one time em- 
bracing all the country about Bassein, Rangoon, and 
Moulmein. ‘Their language is entirely distinct from 
the Burman, Karen, or Shan; but the larger portion 
of the Taligns have already adopted the Burman lan- 
guage, and the only Taligns who now pass by that 
name are found in the vicinity of Moulmein. They 
number about eighty thousand, and are not divided 
into tribes. The habits and customs of the Taligns 
who have adopted the Burman language are substan- 


14 


tially the same as those of the Burmans; and even the 
Talign-speaking people do not differ materially from 
the rest of the people of the country, except in lan- 
guage. They are Buddhists, and share in the bigotry 
common to disciples of that religion. 


10. Minor Tribes. 


The Danoos are a people resembling the Shans in 
dress, but speaking the Burman language only. They 
are said to be a distinct race, and are found in the 
south-eastern part of Upper Burma, between the 
boundaries of the Shan and Burman countries. 


The Padoungs are a tribe of people found in the 
mountainous country north-east of Toungoo. Like 
many of these small hill tribes, they are probably re- 
lated to the Karens.. The gospel is beginning to find 
some acceptance among this people. 


The Paloungs occupy a tract of country in the same 
general location as the Padoungs. They resemble the 
Shans in features, but the Karens in dress. 


The Geckos are another small tribe in this same 
section, where the variation of races and tongues is 
remarkable, even for Burma. 


The Brecs are also a tribe of this same mountain- 
ous country, resembling the Karens in their general 
characteristics. ‘The number of the various small hill- 
tribes is given in the census of Lower Burma as 


27,598. 


15 


The Kemees are a tribe of Arakan, closely allied to 
the Burmans. 


The Salongs are a small tribe inhabiting the islands 
of the Mergui Archipelago, allied to the Malay race. 
Their homes afford them a beautiful climate and scen- 
ery; but they are very poor, gaining a scanty liveli- 
hood from the sea, and they live chiefly in their boats. 
Their language has been reduced to writing; and they 
have been occasionally visited by missionaries, who 
have found them almost destitute of any religion. 


Other Nationalities. — In Burma there are more than 
five hundred thousand natives of India proper, and 
fifteen to twenty thousand Chinese who have come 
there for the advantages of trade. The natives of 
India are chiefly from the Tamils and Telugus, and 
are increasing in numbers so rapidly in the commercial 
cities that in Rangoon, the capital, it is said they 
already outnumber the native population. In Burma 
there are also about fifteen thousand Europeans and 
Eurasians, or persons of mixed European and Asiatic 
parentage, 


CHRISTIANITY IN BURMA, 


[From the ‘‘ Friend of India.’’] 


WitH all the material prosperity which has marked the 
progress of Burma since the annexation, there has been a 
decided spread of Christianity; and although 87 per cent of 
the people return themselves as Buddhists, .038 as mat or 
spirit worshippers, .o22 as Christians, in all 84,219, still 
among the Karens, a race grievously oppressed during the 
rule of the Burman dynasty, the missionary teachers have 
been able to effect a very greatwork. In the Administration 
Report for British Burma for the year 1880-81, it is said, 
‘Foremost in this work have been American missionaries 
of the Baptist persuasion. . . . There are now attached to 
this communion no less than 451 Christian Karen parishes, 
most of which support their own church, their own Karen 
pastor, and their own parish school, and many of which sub- 
scribe considerable sums in money and kind for the further- 
ance of missionary work among Karens and other hill-races 
beyond the British border. Christianity continues to spread 
among the Karens to the great advantage of the common- 
wealth; and the Christian Karen communities are distinctly 
more industrious, better educated, and more law-aliding than 

the Burman and Karen villages around them. The Karen 
_ race and the British Government owe a great debt to the 
American missionaries, who have, under Providence, wrought 
this change among the Karens of Burma.” 


